A Piece of Heaven
by Myuu-Foxgirl
Summary: A careless mistake leaves Akane heartbroken, and yearning to be at peace with Ranma. He's been dead for ten years, but she's still feeling guilty. How will it end? PG13 for death and suicide mentions.


Disclaimer: I do not own Ranma 1/2. That distinction belongs to Takahashi Rumiko-sama.

Akane quietly chopped the vegetables that would be going in that night's dinner. She, herself, wouldn't be eating - she never did on this day - but she knew that other people would. She was well aware that some people thought her mind had been shattered when Ranma had died - and it almost had been, since she'd blamed it on herself. She paused, thinking back to that day...

----flashback---

_Akane muttered under her breath as she walked down the streets towards Uc-chan's, where she knew Ranma was because Ukyo had dragged him there earlier in the day. Kasumi had sent her to tell him that dinner would be soon, and would he like to come home? She sighed as she pushed open the door, not bothering to worry about bumping any customers because the restaurant was closed. What she did not expect to see, was Ukyo clinging to Ranma while she kissed him. Akane's mind tried to reboot while her jaw sagged and her body jerked to a stop. Her brain tried to compute, and once it had, she began to fume, but she just turned on her heel and rushed out of the restaurant._

_Ranma finally managed to get Ukyo off of him, and looked out the door. He saw Akane's retreating back, and he made the obvious connection. "Oh, shit." He rushed out, and called, "Akane! Wait! It wasn't what it looked like!"_

_"Oh, sure. You were kissing Ukyo and it 'wasn't what it looked like'?! Ranma Saotome, that was a pitiful excuse!" She kept walking._

_"Oh like you could do better!" he shot back. "And anyways, you sound like you care!"_

_Akane whirled around in the middle of the street. "What, I'm not allowed to feel shocked, angry and maybe even betrayed because I just walked in on my fiance kissing another girl? What do you know about it?!"_

_"Akane--"_

_She cut him off. "Well, I guess if you want to make kissey faces with her, don't let me stop you! After all, I'm just a dumb, kawaiikune tomboy!"_

_"Akane! Look out!" Ranma yelled, pointing behind her. She spun around, and saw a large truck barreling towards her at about sixty miles per hour. She tried to move, but discovered that her muscles had locked in fright. Ranma screamed her name, and took off towards her at blinding speeds. Akane felt herself being pushed, and she landed on the road, out of the way of the truck. She watched in almost fascinated horror as the truck slammed into Ranma and sent him flying with an audible crack. _

_Almost before the truck had gone past, she was on her feet and running. She fell to her knees, ignoring the pain when they were skinned, and gently cradled Ranma's face in her hands. His eyes were glazed with pain, and she guessed, from the looks of it, that his spine had been broken in at least two places. Looking up, she screamed, "Somebody call an ambulance!"_

_Ukyo snapped out of her shock and ran as fast as she could for the nearest phone. Akane looked back into Ranma's eyes, and saw him give a small vestige of his familiar smirk. Her eyes spilled over with tears, and one splattered on his face. He reached up and shakily, but gently, wiped her face with his fingers._

_"Don't cry, my iinazuke," he whispered. "Can't bear to... see you cry. Hurts my... heart."_

_"Ranma, I'm so sorry!" she whispered, stroking his cheek._

_"It was... me or you," he answered. "I'd rather you... live."_

_"But why? Ranma--"_

_"Shh," he interrupted. "Don't want you to..die. It'd break my heart. I..I love you, Akane."_

_"Ranma, why do things like this always happen when it's too late?" Akane asked in a broken voice. "I love you to, you idiot, You can't die and leave me here alone!"_

_"Stay with me?" he asked as the ambulance came to a wailing stop nearby. _

_"Always," she replied. _

_And she stayed with him, even threatening the doctors when they asked her to leave, to which she would reply, "He's my fiance, and I promised I'd stay with him," and ask if the doctor knew what promises and honor meant to a martial artist. That invariably made the doctor in question go pale, and allow her to stay. The whole NWC showed up, most of them looking like they'd been crying. Even Genma did, and that was a rare thing. _

_About five AM, the morning after he'd been hit, Ranma woke up. Everything had a curiously sharp and detailed look to it, and he realized that he would probably die soon. But he really didn't want to die without marrying the woman he loved. The thought struck him like a lightning bolt, and he smiled and tried to move, only to find that everything was pretty much numb from just below his shoulders on down. He couldn't feel them, and he thought back to when the truck had hit him. **That crackin' sound must've been my spine**, he realized with a detached observation. He turned his head, and noticed Akane sprawled in a chair next to the bed where he was laying, dried tears on her face._

_**My poor Akane..** he thought as he gently squeezed her hand. She woke up almost instantly, and smiled at him._

_"Ranma!" she whispered, delighted. "You're awake!"_

_"Noticed that," he replied, with a small smirk._

_"This is the first time you've woken up since..." She gestured, not wanting to say it. He nodded._

_"Thought so. Don't 'member waking up before."_

_Akane's eyes filled with tears at his slurred and slightly chopped voice. "Ranma..."_

_"Marry me?" he asked, taking her by surprise._

_"What?"_

_"Marry me? Don't want to die. Not without you bein' my wife," he explained. _

_Her eyes spilled over. "Oh, Ranma," she sobbed. "Are you sure you'll--?"_

_"Sure. Don't know how soon."_

_Akane stifled another sob. "But, you can't leave. I love you, I need you! Ranma...Please, don't die."_

_"Don't want to. Can't help it," he whispered, stroking his thumb over the back of her hand. He repeated his earlier request. "Marry me?"_

_"Of course I will," she answered. "You're my life, you know that?"_

_"Do now," he replied with a smile. _

_"You're still a cocky idiot," Akane said, half-laughing, half-crying. "What will I do without you?"_

_"Don't know."_

_"That was helpful," she deadpanned. "I'll go get Nabiki. I'll be back as soon as I can."_

_"Okay."_

_About an hour later, everything was set up. They had the rings, the priest, the witnesses, and the certificate to sign. All they needed for a simple ceremony. Akane sat holding Ranma's hand, and she couldn't help the tears that fell. **I'm finally marrying him**, she thought, wiping them away. **But I'll be a widow soon enough. Why? Why does it have to happen like this?!**_

_The priest cleared his throat, and both of them focused their attention on him. "Dearly beloved," the priest began, "we are gathered here today to join this man and this woman in holy matrimony..." The priest moved on, then said, "Ranma Saotome, will you have Akane Tendo as your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, to love, comfort, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, keep yourself only for her so long as you both shall live?"_

_"I will," he answered, obviously struggling to put the 'I' in there._

_"Akane Tendo, will you have Ranma Saotome as your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, to love, comfort, honor and keep him, in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, keep yourself only for him so long as you both shall live?"_

_"I will," she answered, her voice trembling with unshed tears._

_"Ranma Saotome, will you repeat you vows?"_

_"I, Ranma Saotome, take you, Akane Tendo, to be my wedded wife. To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness or in health, to love and to cherish 'til death do us part. And I pledge you my faithfulness." Sweat stood out on his brow from the strain of remembering all the words in their proper order, and saying them the right way._

_"Akane Tendo, will you repeat your vows?"_

_"I, Akane Tendo, take you, Ranma Saotome, to be my wedded husband. To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish 'til death do us part. And I pledge you my faithfulness."_

_"Ranma Saotome, what token do you give of the vows you have made?"_

_"This ring."_

_"Bless this ring, O Lord, and he who gives it and she who wears it."_

_"Akane, I give you this ring as pledge of the sin...sin..sincerity of my vows." He slid the ring onto her finger as best as he could. He heard her stifle a cry._

_"Akane Tendo, what token do you give of the vows you have made?"_

_"This ring."_

_"Bless this ring, O Lord, and she who gives it and he who wears it."_

_"Ranma, I give you this ring as a pledge of the sincerity of my vows." Akane slid the ring onto his fingers, and a tear slid down her face. It landed on their linked hands, a single wet splatter._

_"Forasmuch as Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendo have consented together in holy wedlock, have witnessed the same before God and this company, by the authority vested in me as a minister of the Gospel, I declare that Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendo are now Husband and Wife, in accordance with the ordinance of God, and the laws of Japan. Whom therefore God hath joined together, let no man put assunder. _

_"I now pronounce you husband and wife; you may kiss the bride."_

_Akane leaned down and gently pressed her lips to Ranma's, sharing their first kiss as husband and wife. As she straightened up, the priest said one last thing, to the room as a whole._

_"I now present to you Mr. and Mrs. Ranma Saotome." A smattering of applause and silent tears greeted this pronouncement, and the priest bowed his respect, the quietly left. Quiet congratulations were given to them, and then Ranma asked if he and Akane could be alone. Ranma squeezed her hand, giving what comfort he could. **It's odd,** he thought, **I've finally married her.. But we'll have so little time together. Makes me feel more like a jerk than ever. I wish I had more time..**_

_"I wish we had more time, Ranma," Akane whispered, unwittingly echoing his thoughts._

_"Me too. Feel bad.."_

_"What for?"_

_"Leaving. Not have time to.. live. Right?"_

_"Yeah... But you can't help it. And I don't blame you, I blame myself. If I hadn't been so stupid--"_

_"Was stupid. Not you. Let her kiss me, didn't want it. She not.. do.." Ranma looked frustrated._

_"Didn't?" Akane supplied gently._

_Ranma nodded. "Didn't. Understand that didn't want her. She kiss, try to convince, not work. You walk..walked in, saw us." He shrugged._

_"Ranma, if I hadn't flown off the handle--"_

_"Not your fault. Mine."_

_"You can't take all the blame. I was the one who stopped in the middle of the road!"_

_"You angry. Not think right."_

_"Gee, that makes me feel so much better, Ranma." She leaned closer. "Because of me, and my stupidity, you're going to die. Because I didn't move. And we won't have a life together, because I was too stupid!"_

_Ranma wished he could move more that his arms and head. **I want to comfort her.. I wish I could...** "Akane. Lay down?"_

_"What?" She blinked, startled._

_"Lay.. with me? On the bed?" he elaborated._

_"But I'll hurt you.."_

_"Not more than hurts to see you hurt," he replied. He shrugged. "Will die anyway. Rather go holding you."_

_Akane made a sound that was about halfway between a laugh and a sob, and carefully climbed onto the bed. She carefully lay down, pillowing her head on hi shoulder and helping him wrap his arm around her. She twined her fingers with those of his free hand, and let the tears flow. "This isn't how I'd pictured our wedding day, you know," she whispered, voice trembling as the tears fell._

_"Me either. Love you, though."_

_"I love you, too, Ranma. I.. I just wish you didn't have to die. I don't know what I'll do without you." The tears fell faster, and Ranma squeezed her hand._

_"Survive. Be there in spirit, stay with you."_

_"You will? You'll stay with me?"_

_"Always," he replied. He felt tears in his eyes, and let them fall. They lay there together, silently crying, occasionally talking, but always holding onto one another. At precisely two-thirty-six PM, Ranma Saotome, renowned martial artist of Nerima precinct, Tokyo, Japan, breathed his last. Akane waited for his chest to rise again, for his heart to beat once more, but it never happened. She lay there, silently weeping and holding onto him, until the night nurse and Kasumi came to check on her. Kasumi gently led her away from Ranma, tears falling from her eyes as well. _

_Life in the Tendo dojo would never be the same again._

_At Ranma's funeral, Akane cried more, the tears wetting the earth as she watched the dark coffin being lowered into the ground; the coffin that held the body of the man she loved with all her heart. When the first lump of dirt landed on the coffin, she fell to her knees, weeping and calling for him to come back, that he was wrong, that she couldn't survive without him. No one who saw that, who saw her tear streaked face as she begged him to come back, could doubt her love for the stubborn, rude, stupid jerk - that had meant the world to her._

_"Ranma... come back...." she whispered on the wind as the last bit of dirt was tamped into place. "I love you.."_

---end flashback---

Akane wiped her eyes, remembering the pain she'd lived through. She'd thought, more than once, of suicide. She'd even gone so far as to set the blade to her wrist before she'd dropped the blade from her trembling hand and broke down in tears. That first year without him.. She'd been a mess. Whenever she went outside, she'd been down, never smiling at anyone. Everyone had understood, and given her looks of pity, but that had only driven her loneliness home harder. Her hair had scarcely ever been combed, and when it was, it was because Kasumi had sat her down and brushed it for her. Shampoo, Ukyo, and Kodachi had extended their friendship, knowing that what they were going through - heartbreak, sorrow, anger and a dozen other things - Akane was feeling ten times worse.

_I was a seventeen and a half year old widow, and thoroughly convinced my life was over,_ she thought, setting down the knife and picking up a tissue to blow her nose on. _Thank God Ranma kept his promise._

And as if to think of him was to summon him, the slightly glowing and see-through form of Ranma Saotome walked through the wall and over to Akane. "Whatcha thinkin' about?" he asked, leaning against the counter.

"The day you died, Ranma. And the year after that. I missed you so much."

"Hey.." He reached out, and drew her into his ghostly, yet somehow almost solid, arms and stroked her hair,murmuring comforting sounds. "Shh... I'm here now, don't cry. Please don't cry."

"I'm sorry, it's just.." Akane trailed off, and clung to him. Kasumi walked into the kitchen, and smiled sadly when she saw Akane clinging to Ranma's ethereal body. She then glanced at the calendar on the wall, and realized why her little sister was crying. It was the tenth anniversary of Ranma's death, and Akane was always a bit more emotional when the anniversary rolled around.

_Fate was cruel to them,_ Kasumi thought, eyeing Akane and her deceased husband. _Ranma should have a real body, and there should be kids running around. Instead, we see this. So close, so full of love, but separated by a chasm as wide as that between life and death. I wouldn't wish this fate on anyone._

"I'm sorry to interrupt, you two, but.." Kasumi paused. "It's time to get going."

Ranma nodded, his pigtail swaying, and Akane slowly straightened and wiped her eyes. Their fingers twined together, real with ethereal, and they followed Kasumi out to the car. Kasumi and Dr. Tofu's normally energetic twin boys were sitting quietly in the back seat, and they made room for their aunt. They knew how much this day meant to their aunt, so they were on their best behavior. Shinji even reached over to hug her - and for an eight year old boy to willingly hug someone, even his favorite aunt, meant a lot. Akane knew that, and smiled at him, then mouthed "Thank you."

He nodded, and Akane buckled herself in. Being a ghost, Ranma didn't need to buckle up, so he just held Akane's hand and stroked her hair. All too soon, they arrived at the cemetery, and Ranma opened the door, then helped Akane out. Most people didn't notice that he was a bit see-through - or that he floated about an inch off the ground, no matter what. But the NWC was used to it, and they didn't glance twice at him for those things. Silently, and by unspoken tradition, they all surrounded Akane, a ring of support while she visited her husbands grave.

She knelt on the ground next to it, and was aware of Ranma sinking down next to her. He held her hand, and together they revisited so many happy memories, times when they had been more innocent and more inclined to laugh. The hours passed, but no one got up to leave, even though a few of them were getting uncomfortable. Finally, Akane stood up, and traced the writing on the headstone with her fingers, more tears falling from her face.

Here lies

Ranma Saotome

January 7th, 1977-June 19th, 1994

Beloved son, friend, and husband.

May he rest in peace in His hands.

She took a shuddering breath, and her hand dropped to her side. "Ten years, Ranma. It's been ten years. And even though you're here with me, like you promised, I still miss you so much it hurts. I wanted to have your children, wanted to tease you about your sleeping habits, call you a dummy, spend the rest of my life with you. Dreams shattered by jumping to conclusions, and letting my temper get the best of me. I'm so, so sorry, Ranma. I wish I could go back, and change that, but what's done is done, and no amount of wishing, no matter how desperate, can change that."

She sniffed, and wiped her nose on her sleeve. "God, I miss you! All my stupidity did was cause us all pain. I'm so sorry. I never meant for this to happen, but I know you know that I love you, and I always will, not matter what.

"You were the best thing that ever happened to me, you know. Nothing else measures anywhere near close. Every day, I thank God for you, and curse my own foolishness that cut our time together so short. Mine is the fool's fate, Ranma. But I survived, just like you said. Thank you, Ranma. For everything."

She turned and walked away from his grave, taking comfort in the feel of his fingers twined with hers as the faint murmurs of the other's messages filled the air. Akane got into the car, and then buried her face in his shoulder as she cried. Cried for so many lost opportunities; so many mistakes made, and never fixed; so many things that could've been done better, but weren't. So much time wasted on things that, in the long run, didn't matter that much. So much.. and, in the end, so little. So very little. Fate had dealt them a cruel hand, and they'd done their best to survive it.

Although it was a matter of opinion on whether grieving every day of your life was surviving.

Ranma just held her close, running his hands through her hair, and feeling ghostly tears run down his ghostly cheeks. _This isn't fair. I'm the one that died, but she suffers every day because of a mistake. A stupid mistake. Damnit, it shouldn't be like this! I don't know who I pissed off, or how, but I don't think it deserved this. **She** doesn't deserve this. It isn't right, but this is something I just can't fix. I'm so sorry, Akane. So sorry that I died when you needed me so much, that I can't fix it, that you have to suffer for the simple act of loving me. This just isn't fair._

_I wish I could change this for you..._

Kasumi and Dr. Tofu got back in the car, both noting with sad eyes the young couple in the back, crying. Silently, Tofu started the car, and drove back to the dojo. Everyone got out, and watched Ranma and Akane retreat to "their" room, knowing from experience that Akane wouldn't be hungry. She never was, after a visit to Ranma's grave. Despite the fact that Ranma was present, there wasn't a single moment that went by where Akane wasn't aware that he was also dead, and visiting the physical reminder of that fact always made her sad, depressed, and unable to eat.

The rest of the evening went by slowly, and the crew broke up early. Goodbyes were said, and everyone left for their respective homes. Kasumi checked in on Akane before walking on to the room she shared with Tofu. She crawled into bed, and curled up next to him. He wrapped his arms around her, and they fell asleep together.

The next morning, Kasumi was surprised not to find Akane already sitting at the table with her morning tea, but she didn't worry, since that happened occasionally. But when nine AM rolled around, and Akane still hadn't come down, she got worried. So she got up, and walked upstairs, then knocked on the door.

"Akane?" she called. "Akane, are you awake?"

There was no answer. Kasumi called again, and again, received no answer. Testing the handle, she found it unlocked, and went in. The curtains were drawn, and the light was off. There wasn't even the slight glow that Ranma gave off in the dark. "Akane?" Kasumi asked, flicking the light switch on. Once again, there was no reply, so she walked over to the bed. She saw Akane sleeping, with a small smile on her face. She shook her sister's shoulder, trying to make her wake up, but that didn't work. A cold chill ran down Kasumi's spine, and she gently looked for a pulse.

There was none.

Downstairs, Tofu and the boys heard Kasumi's cry, and rushed up the stairs. They burst into Akane's room, and saw Kasumi looking sadly at Akane while pulling the blanket up to cover her slightly smiling face.

"Kasumi, what's wrong?" Tofu asked, walking closer.

Kasumi looked up, her tear streaked face catching the light as she replied, "It's Akane. S-she's dead, Tofu."

"What? But she was healthy yesterday."

"Healthy in body, Tofu," Kasumi replied, shaking her head softly. "But not in mind, heart, or soul."

The NWC watched as another coffin was lowered into the ground, right next to Ranma's grave. Inside this one was Akane, dead of heart failure at age twenty-seven. The one comfort all her friends had was that she was with Ranma now, like she had been looking forward to. As the first lump of dirt hit the coffin, the same preacher that had married the two, and spoken at Ranma's funeral, stepped forward.

"She was a good friend to all of us," he started. "Always encouraging us to be happy and enjoy life when she, herself, could do neither. Never before have I seen a love like theirs, and I count the years I knew her, and through her, him, as the most blessed time in my life. If there was ever a woman more truly worthy of our admiration, friendship, support and love, let her be shown. Because Akane Saotome was a rare person.

"She always had a kind word, a caring smile, and a open shoulder for any one of us. I don't know if we deserved a friend like her, but I do know that we were part of what kept her going. She has moved on, gone to join the rest of her soul, but her presence will still be felt among us years from now, because she touched us, and healed our wounds while hiding her own. She was a wonderfully rare person, and I think we were all blessed to have known her. They both rest in His hime, now, and I am sure they will watch us until our time to join them comes.

"Let us bow our heads in prayer, for this day, God has found two more angels to add to His flock." The priest bowed his head, and his lips moved in silent prayer.

It was Shinji who first spotted it. A glowing stairway leading into the sky, with two people standing at the foot of it. He pointed and called out, and everyone turned to face it. There, before them, looking truly happy for the first time in ten years, was Akane, with Ranma next to her. She smiled.

"Thank you," was all she said, but it had a range of emotions in it, and everyone there felt their eyes tear up, and spill over. Then, with a wave, she and Ranma turned around, and, hand in hand, eagerly began climbing the stairs.

The priest looked on in awe as tears of profound joy fell from his eyes, and he whispered, "God has indeed found to more angels for His flock. Hallelujah!"

Smiles were exchanged all around. Two troubled souls had finally found peace, and been taken home. Hallelujah, indeed.

Oh, wow. That is all I have to say. Wow. As for Ranma's chopped up speech.. frankly, after eing hit with a truck that size, going that fast, I'm surprised he can talk at all, let alone the he didn't die instantly.

I want to thank avolare for inspiring me with his/her description of his/her fic, In the Arms of an Angel, because if I hadn't read that description, this incredible story would not have come to pass.

I want to thank those of you that read this, and especially those that review. This is one of the best stories I have ever written.

I'd also like to thank God for given me the ability to write so well.

And I'm being formal.. yeah.. this fic actually made me cry while I was writing it, so I think I'm allowed some elation and surprise at the way it ended. I am very satisfied with it. Thank you so very much.

--Myuu


End file.
